Three themes stood out to me in this reading of a young girl's encounter with Germany's oppression of the Jews.
1) Courage. We don't know how brave we are until we are called on to act. Like Annemarie, many of us admire the courage of others and doubt we would be able to exercise it similarly in the same situation. Many of us are secretly "glad to be an ordinary person who would never be called upon for courage" (26).
Yet I think we would do better to prepare ourselves. Jesus warns us not to be surprised if the world hates us (I John 3:13) and again in I Peter 4:12-19 we're cautioned not to be surprised when we go through fiery trials of suffering. As Christians, I think we should prepare ourselves for life not to be easy and for the world to not understand or approve of the way we live and believe. Christians have been called to be imprisoned or die for their faith before, and I daresay we will be again. We still will never know how brave we are until we're called to act, but we can purpose to stand up for what we believe and do what we need to do when the time comes.
Bravery is doing what you need to do without focusing on the dangers. (paraphrased from page 123)
2) Sheltering. Annemarie's papa wished he could protect his daughter from the knowledge that the Germans were coming to gather up all the Jews. Sometimes we parents would like to be able to shelter our children from certain knowledge, but the realities of life often force us to expose them to things so they will be prepared to face and overcome those realities.
3) Pride. It's not always a bad thing. Pride in who we are, in our value as a human being, can help us stand up to face uncertain realities when we are stripped of all the external markers of who we are.
Annemarie's Jewish friends had taken pride in maintaining their home and religious ceremonies, in working as a teacher, in acting in plays. Yet when they were running for their lives in borrowed clothing, dependent on strangers for food and safety, "their shoulders were as straight as they had been in the past: in the classroom, on the stage, at the Sabbath table. So there were other sources, too, of pride, and they had not left everything behind" (94).
Ultimately, I think, a better descriptor than pride is a confidence in who we are in Christ--and a confidence in our God--which will equip us to stand strong. Like the three Hebrew children of old, we can confidently say "we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty's hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up." (Daniel 3:16-18)
Nan and I read this book this summer as we worked through a Lois Lowery kick (we also read The Giver series). Although written simply and for children, it is still a powerful (and very quick!) read for grown ups.
ReplyDeleteI really like how you brought the book back to our confidence in Christ shaping our behavior.
I have been very impressed with Lowry's works. The Giver is, of course, the best. ;)
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